Control of
dental and gum diseases should begin early in life. The following
suggestions are recommended both for the pet that has already had
problems and has been treated in the hospital, and the younger pet
with a healthy mouth.

DIET:Avoid feeding soft, canned, or sticky foods as a large portion of
the diet as they will con­tribute to plaque and tartar
formation and retention. Dry foods and hard bis­cuits will
encourage your pet to chew, but despite the advertis­ing, dry food
alone cannot control gum
disease.

A specially formulated dry
food named t/d from the Hills company helps clean the teeth with
its unique structure. This food does not shatter when chewed.
In­stead, its layers help “squeegee” plaque off the teeth. The food
can be the sole diet or feed as treats. A substance that has been
incorporated into some foods is hexametaphosphate or HMP. This
compound has been added to all adult dry foods that are available
under the Iams
and

Eukanuba
labels. The HMP binds the calcium that would otherwise contribute
to hardening of the plaque into calculus.

CHEW
TOYS:Any firm material that
your pet chooses as a toy will help reduce plaque and tartar
build-up. Rawhide chews work well provided your pet doesn’t try to
swallow them whole. Observe your pet’s habits. Large pieces of
rawhide have been known to cause obstructions of the airway and
intestines. Soft rubber toys can also be chewed into pieces and
swallowed, and natural bones should be avoided completely! Either
the bones will be small enough to be chewed and swallowed or they
will be hard enough to break the teeth. Broken teeth frequently
require extraction or root canal therapy. Nylon bones, ice cubes,
and cow hooves also cause many broken teeth and are not
recommended. The chew toys recommended will have some give to them
and are unlikely to break teeth. Rawhide chews, rope toys and hard
rubber have stood the test of time in providing plaque control with
minimal chances of problems. But even these chews and
toys cannot clean all the crevices between the teeth or the
spaces between the gum tissues and the teeth (where most of the
problems begin!).

BRUSHING:Just as with our own teeth, brushing is the most effec­tive way of
controlling plaque, and all the problems that plaque will lead to.
Most pets will learn to accept this procedure espe­cially if begun
early in life. BRUSHING
DOES NOT HAVE TO BE A CHORE! Start slowly and make it fun for
the pet. Begin simply by handling your pet’s mouth daily. Gently
insert your finger into the cheek while holding the mouth closed.
Make the same motions with your finger that you would make in
brush­ing. While getting your pet used to this, offer good tasting
“treats” on a small soft toothbrush. A few drops of chicken broth,
or milk or even a little garlic powder in water will not upset the
stomach or nutritional balance, but will help overcome your pet’s
anxiety about the brush. Once your pet is coming eagerly for his
“treat” and is accustomed to having his mouth handled, you simply
combine the two new games. Simple back and forth motions are
practical, but circular motions are more effec­tive. The whole
process shouldn’t take more than a minute. Since plaque and tartar
begin forming on the outside (cheek) surfaces of the teeth, it is
usually not necessary to open the mouth and brush the tongue side.
Brushing daily is best, but four to five times weekly will
significantly reduce the calculus formation in dogs and cats Plan
the brushing procedure so that it is followed by something your pet
likes - mealtime, a game, a walk, etc. Baking soda/hydrogen
peroxide paste is not recommended as the sodium content can be bad
for some pets and the peroxide can cause vomiting if enough is
swallowed.

Toothpastes made for humans should not be usedsince dogs and cats don’t
like the soapy bubbles. Also, because pets swallow the toothpaste,
some may get an upset stomach from the detergents that are used in
human products.Meat and milk flavored “toothpastes”
are available to encourage those pets that will not accept brushing
initially. In some pets with minimal disease, a dry
toothbrush off the shelf will be effective in controlling
plaque. For pets that have
greater susceptibility to infection, the best product for plaque
con­trol is a formulation that contains the germicide,
chlor­hexidine. It is very effective in controlling the
plaque-forming bacteria when applied with a brush, but will still
be of some benefit in those pets that will not allow brushing. The
gel or rinse can simply be squeezed into the mouth once
daily.